Competition and coordination in state intrapreneurialism: the case of South Korea’s export of urban expertise

Keywords: state intrapreneurialism; urban management; South Korea; ICT; smart city
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

State entrepreneurialism in response to external market stimuli has a state intrapreneurialism counterpart – the entrepreneurialism found within public institutions. This paper develops the idea of state intrapreneurialism by injecting a greater sense of the competition and coordination that play into the dynamics of identifying needs, crafting policy narratives, and forging domestic and international networks. With reference to the case of South Korea, this paper illustrates how state intrapreneurialism has generated domestic and international markets and reputation in the ICT-assisted city management domain despite elements of competition among a plethora of public agencies. The example of South Korean state intrapreneurialism raises broader questions for future research on the territoriality and extra-territoriality of the state at the intersection of the urban, political, and economic geography subdisciplines.